February 29 - Leap Day - Leap Year Cancels

And some non-U.S. Leap Day cancels:

Canada, Feb 29, 1940. Toronto, Ontario Air Mail slogan cancel on cover which had lost its stamp. It also has the corporate receiving datestamp on the reverse side from The Globe and Mail.



Canada, Feb 29, 1960. Boxed Roxton receiving cancel on C.O.D. envelope.


Czechoslovakia, Feb 29, 1940. Destination Leap Day "field post" cancel from Great Britain.


Germany, Feb 29, 1888. Munchen cancel on postal card.


Great Britain, Feb 29, 1956. Registered cover from the Fleet Street P.O. to America.



Great Britain, Feb 29, 1968. Selkirk machine cancel.


Great Britain (& colonies), Feb 29, 1972. Change to decimal currency. Lots of these philatelic covers exist from many towns with many cachets.


Guatemala, Feb 29, 1972.


Palau, Feb 29, 1988. First Day Cover for Scott 187-190, ground dwelling birds.


Trinidad & Tobago, Feb 29, 1956. Cancel on Scott 73.


United Nations, Feb 29, 1956. Pictorial roller cancel from the New York office.


United Nations, Feb 29, 1960. First Day Cover for Scott 77-78, Chaillot Palace in Paris.

John, what a great group you've assembled. Among many other dates that I try to pay attention to February 29 is one of them. These are the only ones I have found after years of paying attention while searching. Dave


I sold on eBay June 23, 2018


Failed to sell on eBay November 1, 2017


I sold on eBay April 26, 2017


Still own this one.

Welcome to the 2024 Leap Day installment! No attempt to cover one per year, just a limited random selection this time.

1796, Albany, New York, stampless folded letter rated at 17 cents (collect) for 200-250 miles.


1844, Tallahassee, Florida Territory, sfl rated at 25 cents (collect) for more than 400 miles. The rate of folded letters is based "per sheet". Having lots of drafts (similar to checks) to mail, the sender had the blank form printed on a large sheet which doubled as the folded letter at the *single* letter rate. The draft/check portion is typically clipped from these letters by the recipient and run through the banking system, but in this case was left intact with endorsement on the reverse.



1844, Ithaca, New York, sfl rated at 18-3/4 (pre-paid) for 150-40 miles.


1856, Washington, DC, free frank of Robert J. Atkinson while 3rd Auditor of the Treasury.


1864, Charleston, South Carolina, Confederate States #11. The only Leap Day during the civil war.


1872, Washington, DC, free frank of Jackson Orr, Representative from Iowa. Year dates in the post civil war years are often hard to determine, but the enclosed letter dates this cover nicely.


1892, Rochester, New York, E2 stamp on special delivery cover.


1896, New York, NY, two Leap Day transit markings on reverse side of a letter from Boston, through the main NYC office at 1am to Station H at 4am.


1904, Decatur, Illinois, Barr-Fyke machine cancel on UX18 postal card. One of the less-common machines of this era.


1904, Sebago Lake, Maine, top portion of full monthly "Carriers Trip Report" for February 1904, with Leap Day R.F.D. postmark at the top.


1904, New York, NY, uncommon "PAID ALL" International Postal Supply Company machine dial as a receiving mark on a postcard from France to Gloucester, Massachusetts.


1908, Washington, DC, 2 cent battleship revenue stamp used illegally (and successfully) on letter to Senator Chauncey M. DePew.


1908, Durant, Oklahoma, Doremus "RECEIVED" machine cancel postmark on back of cover.


1924, Green Bay, Station A, Wisconsin, American flag machine cancel with unusual redundant "Station A" in the dial and flag.


1928, Albany, New York, Charles Lindbergh visited Albany on February 29, 1928 to lobby the state legislature. Philatelic cover with two additional seals showing Lindbergh and his mother produced for the American Booklovers Society.


1932, Rochester, New York, home of the Multipost Company, which made several different mailing machines. Cover with privately-applied Multipost Combi-Mailer cancel on machine-applied precanceled coil stamp.


1944, New York, NY, Prisoner of War letter sheet sent from German POW held at Camp Mexia, in Mexia, Texas. Examined and postmarked in New York City on February 29, 1944 on its way to Germany.


1944, Ford City, Pennsylvania, advertising meter from the Eljer Company showing a toilet!



1952, Dan N. Wilkinson's personal R.P.O. clerk handstamp along the El Paso & Los Angeles, E.D. (eastern division) on a facing slip. Leap Day 1952 fell on a Sunday. Philatelic.


1960, Cincinnati, Ohio, Transfer Clerk R.M.S., Universal Model K hand-driven machine cancel applied at the railroad station.

Here is one of my examples - Feb 29 1960 Vancouver Canada slogan cancel urging you to mail your income tax return now.




Jan

This one is not pretty but having this on a Flag of Truce Cover with both CSA and US stamps makes this one I really like.



Hobsun

And to catch up after the fact ... I see I need to add something here from 2020:

And a show cancel from the 2020 Toledo show:


As a tourist aside, when settled about 200 years ago,Toledo, Ohio was quite swampy and got the nickname of "frog town", which was commemorated by this mosiac in the floor of the Lucas County courthouse in downtown Toledo. It's about 2 feet in diameter and located just inside the front entrance door, due south of the rotunda where I expected it to be. The guard at the security desk escorted me to/from the frog to take this photo since photography inside the building is restricted.


And 2024, which continues to be quite mundane when mail is dropped in a blue box:

I missed this thread the first time around. What an incredible collection of covers, John. Virtually every item is a respectable piece of postal history by itself - that happens to be cancelled on Feb 29 as a bonus. I have a few Feb 29 covers but they are not worth posting, just ordinary mail. I love your Feb 31 and other oddball dates as well. What fun.
Here are a few of my off-cover stamps with Feb 29 cancels.

Here is one I just sold on Ebay

Someone (not me) got a very good buy on that cover.

Feb. 29, 1908 cover including 300b single from Brattleboro VT to Havana and forwarded to Santiago Cuba.



Sold at auction today (Kelleher 797-1173) as part of a calendar collection of booklet pane singles on cover, proving once again that there is no end to the types of specialized collections that one can endeavor to complete.

Another non-existent date.

sorry for the necro but this thread is totally fascinating esp since I myself was 48 hours from being a leap year baby. I never knew this as a topical on many levels. Thank you

While I have some leap year cancelled stamps and covers, which I usually buy when I see one, I do not have them organized as a separate group. However, here is my most recent acquisition picked up two days ago from eBay:





Additionally I believe I was the one who purchased the cover shown by jmeverden a few posts above on this, page 3 of the thread,
posted 3-23-24.

Had I explored this thread sooner, I would have answered then.

Thank you for creating this thread and for posting all your February 29th covers and stamps John Becker, ZebraMan and others.

I found it very interesting reading about each covers postal origins and markings. I would like to start collecting February 29th covers myself.

This post is personal for me since my dad is a Leap-year baby - he was born on February 29th 1944 in Canada - he turned 81 this year. He is former military, a Vietnam veteran, and retired state police commander. My dad's first name is Manfred, so I had to smile when I saw that Great Britain February 29th 1968 cover with the receivers last name being Manfred - what a coincidence.

Thank you all again for posting all your 02/29 covers, partials, and stamps.
(edited correction of birth date and age)